The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1887-02-16
A CHINESE THEATRE.
HOW THE PERFORMANCE is CON-
QUOTED IN LOS ANGELES, CAL.


The Stage Open, without Curtain or
scenery-Plays Not Divided into Acts
The Woes Of the Heroine-SOme Fins
Acting.
AS we descended the billy street leading
from the piazza to the theater, strange
unearthly sounds like a night throat
splitting effort at recitative In some barba-
ric opera, accompanied by wild blast of
discordant horns and the clang of brazen
cymbals, tioated up to US on the night air
as faint foretaste of what was to come
As L have said, the interior was rough
and unfinished; there was rude gallery
at the back and on either side running
forward as far as the stage In the side
galleries, well to the front, were the pri-
vate boxes, looking for all the world like
so many grain bins, those on one side be-
ing for the ladies, on the other for the
men. No women sit down in the body of
the house. The seats were rude benches,
both with and without backs. On these
the audience sat, lOunged, or squatted as
the spirit moved Them and a more motley
crowd could hardly be imagined. SmOk-
ing is almost universal-the air being red
Olent and blue with the vapOrs of cheap
cigarets cigars and opium. Through this
as he quietly picks his way in and out
among the crowd disposing Of his wares,
while the Internal braying of the Orches-
ira makes it impossible to hear the shut
fling about that is continually going on.
The stage is open, without curtain or
scenery, and devoid of every thing in the
shape of properties, with the exception of
table or two, some chairs, and a make
shift screen; at the back sit the seven
ma m of no oil
and each seemingly endeavoring to drown
the others out. Their instruments con-
SiSt of fiddle with one string which
makes a sound similar to that emitted by
two cats when they clinch; two horns
ditto; pair of enormous cymbals which
are no thinkers, for every time they come
together one is lifted bodily six inches
from his seat; a brazen gong suspended
from the ceiling by wire, which is
pounded vigorously as the action becomes
more imprisoned; two or three dwarf
banjOs, and species OF kettledrum made
of wood and snake skin.
PLAYS NOT DIVIDED.
There are no divisions of their plays
into acts, but from the beginning to the
close, whatever action is going on,
whether the scene represents a BATTLE the
hush of midnight, or desert solitude, the
orchestra, like Tennyson's brook, goes on
forever, making the air thick with sound.
Above the stage is deep recess, gorgeous
with yellow and red, in which and before
which lights are burning. Deep within
this box resides the joss, who is supposed
to take as much interest in the play over
which he presides as his Worshippers be-
low. The actors make their entrance
through a doorway hung with q crimson
curtain at the back and to the right OF the
stage, and their exits through one to the
left. Above each doorway are mot Toes in
Chinese characters, which, indeed, can
be seen posted everywhere on the walls of
the building.
We arrived in time to behold The woes
of the heroine intensified by the entrance
of the heavy villa in in Mother Hubbard
pants and face hideOusly painted to rep
resent moral depravity. The cymbals
clashed, the gong beat louder, the horns
brayed; the villain f1ourished his sword,
and the lady shrieked in high falsettO.
Right here nigh say in perenthesis that
in a Chinese drama all the women are
men-tEat is, all the female characters
are taken by men, women not being sup
posed to possess sufficient intelligence to
act, though l believe there is woman in
San Francisco, who, becoming imbued
with the spirit OF her American sisters,
has broken through national prejudice
and become fairly successful actress. 1t
is rather startling to see the villain lay two
or three of his enemies out stiff, and in a
moment after see all the slain rise and
walk cOOlly off the stage as though moth
ing had happened. But the Chinese rec
ognize nothing homogeneous in this. In
deed, they let their immaginatiOnS carry
them over many dead points, as it were.
For instance there being no scenery,
whenever it is desired to represent a
change of scene, all the actors move to
another part of the stage or else promen-
ing altogether whether they wish to rep
resent the action as changing from one
room of a house to another or to distant
province.
QUITE FINE ACTING.
l witnessed one bit of'quite fine acting
The character was evidently crossing q
mountain range, going from one prov
ince TO another. Such realism never
witnessed on any stagel 1t was quite
equal to the celebrated pump and wash
tub scene of Mr.. Vincent Crummles. The
mountains, with their dangerous canOns,
vera represented by a plank stretching
between two tables and two chairs |
WhereWith to ascend and descend. The |
individual, it was woman, climbed to |
the table with much effort and te-he-ing, |
adv 6nced to the plank, placed one foot on
it, the orchestra gave an extra shrek, like |
the band in a circus when the man in the |
CItIfGLS gives - JSiiIE' tlANA OAAO dOAlShAJ
withdrew it, apparently overcome with
terror at the danger to be encountered. |
It took fully fifteen minutes to get over
dur!ng which time the actor admirably |
portra ye,l trepridation, anxiety, indecis-
ion, cautiOusness and resolution.
One word about the costumes: They !
were elegant. Heavy satins in all cOlors,
plain and embroidered, with many col
ored silks, together with gold and silver |
threads in the most gorgeous barbaric de-
signs! Huge dragons, nameless mon
sters and impossible forms were repre-
scented in every variety Of color, as we'll as
gorgeous flower and arabesque designs.
OF course the earnings of a company must
be considerable to enable the manager
to supply such rich costumes for his
players, and they are. Not only can he
furnish such elaborate dresses. but ire
quently pays his 'stars" as high as SOU
month And they earn it, for they not |
only have to play from six to nine hours
every night in the week, but much OF the
dialogue is extemporaneous, and then the
wear and tear on their lung attachmenC